InTechnology ponders Allasso sale
Firm also reveals it is on the lookout for potential purchases in the IPT space
Distributor InTechnology is considering selling off its Allasso arm in Europe and may look to acquire in the UK IP Telephony (IPT) space.
The firm acquired security distributor Allasso back in June 2003 (CRN 30 June), and integrated the UK arm of the firm into its UK InTechnology brand. However, Allasso still remains as a separate brand across Europe. “We were approached by the management team in Europe for them to do a buyout, but this didn’t happen,” said Steve Pearce, chief operating officer of InTechnology.
“Since then we have been approached from other distributors and we are deciding whether or not to sell off Allasso in Europe.” Pearce stressed that no firm decision has yet been made. “Culturally it is very hard to integrate companies across Europe,” he added.
The firm is also looking closely at its networking division and its IPT platform, Pearce said. The vendor launched its hosted IPT service in January, under the Voice Connect name and currently has around 2,500 users, which the firm hopes to increase to 10,000 users by the end of 2006.
“Everyone in the next five years will be using IPT,” Pearce said. “Technically we have found it no problem at all, but the sales, marketing and implementation side has been a challenge for us.
"We were very fast to market with our platform, but there is a set of disciplines, such as billing, and knowledge of the minutes, that is new for us and we will need the right resources to address this. It is a significant challenge, and we are always open to the right acquisitions.”
James Byrne, managing director at VAR JCom, said it would be the right move for InTechnology. “Everything is about the network now, so people need connectivity and IPT is going to be big. I think eventually InTechnology will become much more of a networking company.”